Three SCU Alumni Named to WUSA All-Star Team

Sep 09, 2002

Sept. 9, 2002

ATLANTA -
The Women's United Soccer Association unveiled the rosters for the teams that will compete in the 2002 WUSA All-Star Game in Portland, Ore., on Saturday, Sept. 21. Headlining the starters for the squads are two Santa Clara University alumni: for the South All-Stars is 2002 WUSA Defensive Player of the Year Danielle Slaton of the Carolina Courage, while the North will be led by 1999 World Cup standout Brandi Chastain. Additionally, 1999 SCU graduate Kylie Bivens was selected as a reserve for the South team.

These players' selections make Santa Clara University the only college in the nation to have a WUSA, MLS, NBA and MLB All-Star this year. Bronco alumni Joe Cannon of the San Jose Earthquakes, Steve Nash of the Dallas Mavericks, and Randy Winn of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays were selected to their respective all-star teams earlier this summer.

The WUSA's inaugural All-Star Game, presented by Hyundai, will have a World Cup flavor as 13 of the 22 starters competed at the historic Women's World Cup in 1999. The game will be held at PGE Park in Portland on September 21 at 1 p.m. Pacific Time. The match will be broadcast live nationally on PAX TV.

Chastain is one of the most recognizable figures in women's soccer. She was a consistent threat offensively for the CyberRays last season, splitting time at forward and defender. A member of the U.S. national team since 1988, Chastain is best known for her heroics in the 1999 Women's World Cup when she scored the game-winning penalty kick in the championship match against China. She was also a member of the U.S. National Team that won the first women's world soccer championship in 1991 and the first women's Olympic gold medal in soccer in 1996.

Slaton made an immediate impact on the Carolina defense in 2002, earning WUSA Defensive Player of the Year honors in her rookie season. She saw action in 18 games during her first professional season, scoring four goals. As the first overall pick in the 2002 WUSA Draft, Slaton anchored a Courage defense that allowed just 1.43 goals per game in 2002 after giving up a league-high 1.90 per match in 2001. A member of the U.S. national team since 1999, Slaton was the youngest player on the silver medal team during the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.

Bivens, a rising U.S. national team standout, has started as a defender in each of her two WUSA seasons with Atlanta, but was moved to midfield midway through each year as Atlanta head coach Tom Stone felt her speed, vision and passing ability was best served in the midfield. She registered a goal and four assists this past season and has seven caps with the U.S. National Team in 2002.